Vehicles such as hatchbacks, vans, sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and station wagons include rear cargo areas and are known to use retractable Tonneau cover style cargo shades. Other vehicles use solid trays in place of the Tonneau cover style cargo shades. When not in use both types of shades are required to be removed from their functional positions entirely to store the shade/tray either within the vehicle, if space is provided, or external to the vehicle. This removal, stowing, and reinstallation process often becomes burdensome and/or an inconvenient for the vehicle owner. Even more, the cargo shades/trays may be misplaced or lost, or stowed loose in the rear cargo area where they can be in the way of unfettered use of the rear cargo area, or damaged when stowed loose and other cargo is loaded into the rear cargo area.
Accordingly, a need exists for a rear cargo area solution that is able to be stowed in the rear cargo area without being removed from its functional position. Such a solution would also allow the tray to be positioned in a stowed position, allowing unfettered use of substantially the entirety of the rear cargo area, or at least one deployed position, in the deployed position, the tray provides coverage of the cargo resting on the floor of the rear cargo area and may provide a second cargo area, i.e., a two-tier rear cargo area.